Tuesday, August 30, 2016

Madison Buchanan’s life has imploded…
Her husband left her for his nineteen-year-old intern, leaving her alone and faced with starting over in her forties. With the help of her feisty best friend, Madison reinvents herself, armed with a new look and open to new possibilities.

Sean Taylor is gorgeous, fun, and young—very young…
He hasn’t had the best of luck. Sean’s track record with women is less than stellar, but when he walks into The Den one day, he just can’t help but be captivated by a dark haired beauty with the sad eyes and killer legs. She’s a little older, but he doesn’t discriminate. More than anything, he wants to be the one to make her smile.

Sean personifies the only thing that has eluded Madison all of her life—joy…
It was meant to be a fling, something fun, with no strings and zero drama, but Sean wants something more, and Madison is just not ready. She’s lived by the rules her family, her friends, even her boss have laid out for her, but her new life is not what she expected. Being with Sean opens feelings she never thought she’d experience.

The the demands of her family and her job throw her boring, simple life into chaos, and Sean is no exception…
Madison is left with a choice. Give in to the expectations of the world around her—or choose to follow her heart and be happy.

But choosing happy is so much harder than it seems.

I had talked myself into and out of going at least fifty times by the time Margot sauntered into my office for lunch. As per usual, she took one look at me and knew something was wrong.
“Now what?” she asked. Margot dropped her bag on the table in front of me, a hand on her hip and a no nonsense look on her face.
“I said yes, and now I am freaking out!”
“You said yes to what?” she asked.
“To Sean. I said yes to a date with Sean.”
She took a deep breath then turned quickly and sauntered her way over to the door. “Jeremy, get in here,” she called and glanced back at me as I slumped over the table. “She’s gonna need both of us for this one.”
I told them everything, starting with my mother’s insanity and ending with the phone call to Sean. By the time I finished, I was exhausted. They both just sat across from me, wide eyed. After taking in the whole story, they both sat up and shouted, “It’s about damn time,” in unison. They turned and looked at each other with a smirk then faced me again.
“You have to go,” Margot said like it was obvious.
“I know,” I sighed. “It’s just…I haven’t been out with anyone other than Michael since college, and I pretty sure my skills with a crimper will not help me prepare for this date.”
“What’s a crimper?” Jeremy said, scrunching his nose in distaste.
“Just kill me now,” I said dropping my head in my hands.
“Ignore him,” Margot said, waving a dismissive hand at Jeremy. She leaned toward me, her hands clasped together with her elbows propped up on her knees. “You’re thinking too much, as usual. This is not the start of a relationship. You don’t want a relationship right now, and neither does he.”
“I don’t?”
Jeremy laughed. “God no! You fuck the rebound. You don’t date him.”
I raised my eyebrows. I wasn’t used to Jeremy being so colorful around me. I’m still his boss.
“Exactly,” Margot agreed. “Tonight’s about fun, that’s it. Normal dating rules do not apply. You don’t have to impress him. The pressure’s off. You already know he likes you. He’s made that much pretty clear. Now all that’s left to do is make your intentions clear.”
“My intentions?”
“Yes,” Jeremy said, nodding his head in agreement. “Honesty is crucial when it comes to a casual relationship. If you don’t let him know up front that you’re only interested in sex, then he’ll get all heartbroken and clingy when it ends. Make it clear, just sex.”
“How do I know that’s what he wants?” I asked.
They looked at each other and smiled.
“He’s male and under thirty. He will be fine with this arrangement, trust me,” Jeremy said.

Samatha “Sam” Harris lives near Baltimore, Maryland with her husband David and daughter Ava. Born in Florida, she migrated north which most people agree was a little backwards. She has been an artist all of her life, a Tattoo Artist for more than ten years, and a storyteller since she was a kid.

Sam has a slightly unhealthy love for Frank Sinatra, classic movies, and Jazz and Blues music, but her first love will always be reading. From Romance, to Thrillers, to Historical Fiction and everything in between, she loves to become a part of the story. As a writer she tells the stories that she would want to read.

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